Jay shook his head.
"Nope," he said. "Can't think of anything."
Jay noticed a tinge of disappointment in Mark's face and smirked.
"Maybe when we get back home tonight. But nothing right now."
Jay grabbed his cap and put it on backwards, as well as a rain jacket when he noticed the wet weather outside. Jay picked up his keys and the twins piled into their car.
"You know," said Mark, as they left the driveway. "We work at an autobody shop. I don't see why we can't each have our own car."
"Cars are expensive," Jay replied, cranking up the wipers as the rain intensified.
"But we work at an AUTOBODY SHOP," said Mark. "We can get an old one cheap and fix it up. It wouldn't be hard."
Jay merely shrugged.
"Well, if we're going to share a car," Mark continued. "Then I should at least drive every so often."
Jay squinted and peered out the window. He thought he could see something through the rain-streaked windshield.
"What if we need to go to two different places at once?" complained Mark. "I mean, just because we're twins doesn't mean we're literally attached at the hip. If I DO go to college some day, I'm going to need a vehicle of my own. I mean, unless you want... Hey, what's up?"
Mark was cut off mid-sentence by Jay suddenly pulling over to the side of the road. Mark could see a pair of flashing taillights ahead of them. Somebody had their hazard lights on.
"I'm going to see if they need help," said Jay, stepping out of the car into the heavy rain.
Jay turned his cap forward in an attempt to keep the rain out of his eyes. The car in front of his did indeed have its hazard lights on. The hood was up and it looked like steam was pouring out, though it was hard to tell through the heavy rain.
There was a woman in her mid-twenties holding a completely soaked notebook over her head at the hood of the car. She looked quite distressed and seemed grateful that somebody had come to help her.
"Oh, thank you so much!" she yelled over the rain. "They were talking about flash floods on the radio so I was moving some things and... well, now my car's broken down and I can't-" She stopped talking and peered closely at Jay. "Do I know you?" she questioned.
Jay was surprised to recognize the woman. It was Kat, the girl he had crushed on in high school. She was the girl he had dropped his exercise regime for.
"I, uh, yeah," Jay stammered. "It's Jay."
The woman's face lit up and she gave a smile that own its own could have broken the soggy clouds and brought out the sunshine. Jay felt himself flush.
"Jay!" Kat said excitedly. "I didn't recognize you! It's been a while. How've you been? I haven't seen you since high school!"
HONK! HONK!
The pair turned to the twins' car, the source of the sound. It was then that Jay remembered he was standing in the middle of a downpour.
"Let me take a look," Jay said quickly. He made his way over and looked under the hood and saw the problem immediately.
"I think I can fix this at the shop," Jay said.
"Will I need a tow truck?" Kay asked, pulling out her cell phone.
Jay shook his head. "No, I should be able to coax her to the shop. If you want, you can ride with Mark to the shop."
"Oh, no," said Kat, shaking her head. "I want to stay with my car, if that's alright."
"S-sure... Let me go tell Mark."
Jay made his way back to the car and opened the driver-side door.
"What's the problem?" Mark asked.
"Nothing big," Jay replied, still a little flushed. "I should be able to coax the car up to the shop. Go ahead and let Pops know."
Mark smirked. "Finally! I get to drive. Want me to give the lady a ride?"
"No, she wants to stay with her car."
Mark slid over into the driver seat. "Oh, all right. Who is it, anyway? Anyone we know?"
"Yeah, as a matter of fact. "It's Kat, from school."
Mark looked confused. He looked out the windshield at her. "No, that's too old to be Kat. Kat's a teenager."
This time, Jay looked confused. "No, Kat's our age, remember?"
Mark shook his head. No, that couldn't be right. Kat wasn't supposed to be aging. Only himself and his new family were supposed to. Weren't they?
"Uh, okay," said Mark, still confused. "I'll let Pops and Grandpa know what's coming."
Jay walked back to Kat's car as Mark drove away.
"Mark's going ahead to the shop," Jay explained. "Just let me make an adjustment under the hood and we should be right behind him.
Kat nodded and smiled before making her way to the car's passenger side, out of the heavy rain.
Jay made the adjustment under the hood, closed it, and made his way to the driver's seat. He had to scoot the chair back a ways to make room for his stomach and longer legs.
Jay cranked the ignition key. Then cranked it again. The engine didn't start. He tried again, listening closely to the sound it made.
"I may have adjusted it too much," said Jay. "I'll be right back."
Jay popped the hood and opened the driver-side door. But, before he could step out, he felt Kat grab his soaked jacket sleeve.
"No, just wait in here until the rain dies down," Kat pleaded. "You'll get soaked and catch a cold."
Jay shrugged. "I'm kind of already soaked."
Kat gave Jay a pleading look that just melted his heart. "Please?"
Jay sighed to himself and closed the driver-side door, staying inside the car. Just what was he getting himself into?
An uncomfortable moment of silence ensued, the only sound being the the rain on the roof of the car.
"So," said Kat, slowly. "What have you been up to?"
Jay shrugged. "Working with my dad at the shop. You?"
Kat smirked and held up the notebook she'd been using as a make-shift rain shield. "Trying to become a writer. As you can see, I can't even afford a decent umbrella, so I had to improvise with my latest work. It's okay, it wasn't going very well, anyway."
Jay chuckled and took off his soaked baseball cap. He immediately wished he hadn't when he saw Kat glance at his thinning hair.
"So, how's is, uh, what's-his-name, that linebacker doing?" said Jay, attempting smalltalk.
Kat sneered, an expression that looked out of place on her pretty face. "I don't know. I haven't seen him since school, either. Good riddance, too. He was such a jerk. You, on the other hand, stopping to help a stranger."
"Well, you're not a stranger," said Jay. "I just did what anybody else would do."
"But you're not just anybody," said Kat, inching closer to Jay. "You're kind, sweet, and, well, handsome."
Jay wasn't sure what to say. Was she coming on to him? Here? Now? It was like some sort of fantasy come true. He just wasn't sure what to do next.
"I wouldn't say handsome," Jay murmured, gesturing at his thinning hair.
Why did he just do that? Don't be awkward!
Kat merely smirked. "I think it makes you look mature. Ever since high school, I always regretted not giving you a chance. Seeing you here, now, and how you've really become your own man..." Kat hesitated, like she was choosing her words carefully. "I think this may be a second chance for me. Jay, I think we should get to know each other."
Jay could feel his father's testosterone-laden genes stirring, giving him direction.
Jay leaned closer to her. "I think I'd like that."
The two then joined in a long, passionate kiss, long overdue.
Neither noticed that it had stopped raining some time ago.
________________________________
At "Bry and Sy Autobody", Mark waited impatiently for Jay and Kat to show up as he pondered. Why was Kat aging along with them. She hadn't been on the list. He was sure of it! Was the Chronivac really sentient? Was it changing and manipulating events by itself? A machine with that kind of power.
"Mark," said Simon, breaking the bearded twin out of his thoughts. "Jay said he was coming straight here, right?"
Mark nodded. The rain had stopped for about a half hour at that point.
"I'm going to look for him," said Simon making way to his car. "He might've hydroplaned off the the road or-"
"Simon," called Bryan. "You worry about the boy too much. He's 26 years old, now. I think he can take care of himself."
At that moment, Kat's car came into view and pulled into the autobody shop.
"See," said Bryan. "What'd I tell you?"
As Jay and Kat stepped out of the car, Mark felt new memories flood his head. Jay and Kat had been dating for a few months now. Jay had confided in Mark that he felt Kat was the One and was considering proposing to her.
Looking at the pair, Mark could see they looked happy together. Jay would say something in Kat's ear and she would laugh.
"Alright," said Bryan, stepping towards Kat's car. "Let's see what the problem is."